Sylvain Chomet

Sylvain Chomet was born in 1963 in Maisons-Lafitte, France. In 1982, he graduated from high school specializing in art and in 1987 received a diploma from the prestigious comic-strip studio at Angoulême (France). In 1986, he published his first book-length comic, Secrets of the Dragonfly (Futuropolis) and drew an adaptation of a Victor Hugo novel, Bug-Jargal, in collaboration with Nicolas de Crécy. Moving to London to work as an animator at the Richard Purdum studio, in September 1988 he established a London-based freelance practice working on commercials for clients such as Swissair, Principality, Swinton, Renault, etc.

In 1991, Chomet started work on his first animated film project, The Old Lady and the Pigeons, with backgrounds designed by Nicolas de Crécy. In 1992, he wrote the script for a comic entitled The Bridge in Mud (Glénat), a science-fiction and historical saga, now in its fourth episode. The following year, he wrote the story Léon-la-Came, drawn by Nicolas de Crecy and serialized in (A SUIVRE) magazine. The book version was published by Casterman in 1995. It won the René Goscinny Prize in January 1996.

Since 1993, Sylvain Chomet has been based in Canada. He spent 1995 and 1996 finishing his short film The Old Lady and the Pigeons. This film won the Cartoon d'Or prize, the Grand Prize at the Annecy Festival, a BAFTA, the Audience Prize and the Jury Prize at the Angers Premiers Plans Festival and received nominations for both the French Césars and for the Oscars.

In early 1997, Sylvain Chomet published Ugly, poor and sick, again with Nicolas de Crécy. The book version (Casterman) won the Alph-Art Best Comic Prize at the Angoulême Comic Strip Festival in 1997.